


Fireworks

by orphan_account



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Empath Karkat, Established Relationship, Fluff, Humanstuck, M/M, Swearing, i don't know what i should tag this, i guess??
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-19
Updated: 2014-04-19
Packaged: 2018-01-20 00:52:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1490653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dave takes Karkat to see fireworks on New Year's.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fireworks

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Matching Heart Beats](https://archiveofourown.org/works/1487728) by [Merrywetherweather](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merrywetherweather/pseuds/Merrywetherweather). 



The night was young as the number of people surrounding them quickly started to increase. Dave had taken his boyfriend out to the top of a local building where people regularly gathered every New Year’s Eve to watch fireworks. He noticed that Karkat had shifted to move a little closer to his side, before latching onto Dave’s arm entirely. Karkat’s gaze was focused somewhere else that his boyfriend couldn’t quite pinpoint, and his eyebrows were scrunched up as if he was trying to concentrate on something.

Dave carefully navigated through the crowd, leading him along. Was the grip on his arm getting tighter, or was he just imagining things?

“Hey, you alright?”, he asked, slowing his pace to look down at the other’s face.

“I don’t know… This is a fuckton of people,” Karkat replied, glancing around them.

“Do you need to go back? Cause we can totally do that if you need to.” 

After a moment’s hesitation, he shook his head. “No, we’re almost to the front. Let’s just keep moving.”

Keeping his hold on Dave’s arm, he started walking again, pulling the other along. The mob around them only seemed to get bigger and louder as the progressed further through it. A few minutes later, the bustling congregation around them had seemed to become painfully stagnant, with strangers bumping up against them left and right. Now Dave was sure the grip on his arm had tightened dramatically, and he once again looked down at Karkat.

Trying to be loud enough so that Karkat could here him, but not loud enough to make a scene, he asked, “How you doin’?”

The shorter of the two flickered his eyes up at Dave for a short second, and in them, Dave thought he saw the smallest hint of panic.

“Not great, to be honest…,” he said, turning towards Dave, leaning his forehead against the other’s chest and squeezing his eyes shut in an attempt to ignore all the rather loud and obnoxious people. “No, this is too much for me. I’m getting everything at once. All of these people’s feelings. Like, you can only fill a bowl with so much water before it just fucking overflows,” Karkat answered, trying to stay calm by taking slow, deep breaths and not touching anyone besides Dave. If he could concentrate on him alone, it might be enough to block everyone else out. Dave usually seemed to emanate calmness. Now, however, Karkat was beginning to pick out some concern (probably for him), among the sea of different emotions and feelings that were ambushing him. 

Dave tried to look over the heads of people to find the shortest way out. A little ways away, he spotted a large air conditioning structure (similar to the one on top if his apartment building) that they could go behind, and he turned towards that.

“C’mon, then. Let’s get you out of here,” he said, lightly tugging Karkat in the opposite direction.

A small “thanks” was heard from behind him as he shuffled through the dense hoard, trying his best to make sure nobody touched his boyfriend.

A few minutes later, they finally had made it out of the crowd and headed towards the back of the AC structure. As soon as they were there, safe from the crowd, Karkat leaned his back against the cold brick wall surrounding it and closed his eyes as Dave backed off a few feet to give him his personal space for a bit. After two or three minutes of silently watch Karkat hold himself and just breathe, he spoke, keeping his voice low so he didn’t startle him.

“Need anything?”

Keeping his eyes shut, and his breathing now somewhat regular, Karkat replied by slowly reaching a hand towards him. This hand was soon joined by Dave’s, keeping a light grip. Some comforting physical contact, but not too much.

After another minute or so, Karkat’s eyes fluttered open and he pulled Dave over by his arm, and wrapped his arms around him, leaning into his chest again. Dave’s arms did the same, protectively encircling Karkat, now that he had permission to.

“That was spectacularly stupid,” spoke Karkat, before pulling away, but keeping their hands laced together.

“I shouldn’t have taken you over there, I’m sorry. Let me know right away if I ever do something like that again,” Dave looked down at his feet, ashamed of having caused that.

“Hey, don’t beat yourself up for this. You can never tell what’s gonna happen. Let’s just go get some ice cream or something, then go home, okay?”

Dave nodded and gave Karkat’s cheek a quick kiss before leading him towards the stairs and heading back down to his car.

Once they were in the car, Dave drove them to a small ice cream shop and bought both of them rather large sundaes. By then it was almost midnight. Dave knew of a wide open empty space a little ways from the town where they could park and watch the fireworks.

Upon arrival at said clearing, Dave hopped out of the car, walked around to Karkat’s door and held it open for him.

“Wow, when did you get so classy?” Karkat asked with a small laugh before stepping out of the car and hopping onto the hood, soon joined by Dave who wrapped a hand around his waist.

“Not classy,” Dave corrected him, “Romantic. And whether or not you choose to believe that it’s ironically romantic is totally your decision.”

Karkat huffed and leaned his head on Dave’s shoulder before saying, “You know I can tell you’re being 100% sincere right now. And it’s kind of endearing.”

The coolkid failed to keep his coolkid pokerface as he took his shades off, setting them aside and looking back up at the sky with a stupid grin on his face.

“Okay, shut up now. The fireworks are starting.”


End file.
